Rankin’s historic portrait of the West End, PERFORMANCE – RankinLive x West End, launches as a free exhibition in central London, at the Fujifilm House of Photography, 3 November – 31 January.
Called PERFORMANCE, the major exhibition in the heart of London’s West End, pays tribute to the remarkable talent and resilience of the city’s theatre industry as it emerges from the pandemic shutdown.
Across nearly 150 portraits, taken by Rankin, of individuals from nearly 60 top London shows and venues, visitors to the FUJIFILM House of Photography will get a comprehensive look behind the curtain at the countless highly skilled people who make up the sector – from star performers, writers, directors and producers to stage managers, dressers, pit musicians, designers, puppeteers, technicians, stage door keepers, voice coaches and many more.
Championing the best in photography, Rankin shot all images on the iconic FUJIFILM GFX100, with all images printed on FUJIFILM photographic papers on-location at the House of Photography – a central hub for creative works situated in Covent Garden, the heart of theatre-land.
This once-in-a-lifetime celebration of London’s theatreland has been produced in partnership with the Mayor of London’s #LetsDoLondon campaign and the Society of London Theatre (SOLT) as part of their #BackOnStage campaign, to inspire the public about the incredible array of live theatre on offer in the capital, and encourage them to return to the West End to sample its famous cultural offerings.
Visitors to the free exhibition will have the option to donate to the Theatre Artists Fund, which provides emergency aid to struggling theatre freelancers, as well as four London youth homelessness charities selected by the Mayor of London – Depaul, akt, Centrepoint and New Horizons Youth Centre.
Alongside the exhibition, a limited-edition book of the portraits will be launched on 25 November, with all proceeds going to the project’s chosen charities.
The portraits will be exhibited across multiple venues across central London and on train platforms across south east England – with more details to be announced soon.
Sharon Rose as Eliza in Hamilton at the Victoria Palace Theatre (c) Rankin
Exhibition: Performance, RankinLIVE x West End Theatre
Dates: 3 November 2021 – 31 January 2022
Venue: Fujifilm House of Photography, 8-9 Longacre, London WC2E 9LH
Price: free (donations to nominated charities encouraged)
Telephone: 020 3486 4610
Website: www.fujifilm-houseofphotography.com
Stations: Leicester Square (1 min), Covent Garden (3 mins)
Photographed as part of PERFORMANCE – RankinLive x West End Theatre for a free exhibition running from 4 November until 31 January, at the FUJIFILM House of Photography
PERFORMANCE is a once-in-a-lifetime celebration of theatre reborn, capturing nearly 150 onstage stars and backstage heroes from 60 of London’s top venues and shows as they reopen and begin to recover from the pandemic shutdown.
Visitors to the free exhibition will have the option to donate to the Theatre Artists Fund, which provides emergency aid to struggling theatre freelancers, as well as four London youth homelessness charities selected by the Mayor of London – Depaul, akt, Centrepoint and New Horizons Youth Centre.
Alongside the exhibition, a limited-edition book of the portraits will be launched on 25 November, with all proceeds going to the project’s chosen charities.
Images shot with the Fujifilm GFX100, 100MP medium-format camera:
(c) Rankin – Jarnéia Richard-Noel as ‘Catherine of Aragon’, Alexia McIntosh as ‘Anna of Cleves’ and Natalie Paris as ‘Jane Seymour’ from Six at the Vaudeville Theatre
The free exhibition is running from 4 November until 31 January at the FUJIFILM House of Photography, which can be found at 8-9 Long Acre, London, WC2E 9LH.
Alice Afflick-Mensah, Deputy Head of Sound for Hamilton at the Victoria Palace Theatre
